A. Field of Invention
This invention pertains to the field of wiring harnesses used to connect a vehicle to a snow/ice control device, and more specifically to methods and apparatuses for replacing a worn or damaged wiring harness connector that is used to connect a vehicle to a snow/ice control device supported to the vehicle.
B. Description of the Related Art
It is well known in the art to support a snow/ice control device to a vehicle, such as attaching a snow plow to a truck. When such a snow/ice control device requires an electrical connection between the vehicle and the snow/ice control device, such as to provide power or control from the vehicle to the snow/ice control device, a wiring harness is commonly used. The wiring harness has a first end connected to the appropriate component(s) on the vehicle (such as a battery, a motor, a control device, etc.) and a second end connected to the appropriate component(s) on the snow/ice control device (such as a motor, a hydraulic mechanism, a control device, etc.). It is also known in the art to use a pair of wiring harnesses with a connector positioned between them so that that the snow/ice control device may be easily disconnected from the vehicle (such as to remove the snow/ice control device from the vehicle) and easily reconnected (such as to re-attach the snow/ice control device to the vehicle). This is commonly done, for example, with snow plows that are removed from their vehicles for the summer season and re-attached to their vehicles for the winter season.
FIG. 9, shows a known wiring harness assembly 1 that is connected to a vehicle 2 and that is used to connect the vehicle 2 to a snow plow (not shown). As shown, the wiring harness assembly includes a connector 3. The connector 3 has a first end 4 that is fixedly attached to a wiring harness 7 and a second end 5 that is attachable to another wiring harness (not shown) that is attached to the snow plow. The second end 5 may include a cover 6 that is pivotally attached to the connector 3. The cover 6 protects the end of the wiring harness 7 when the snow plow is not used and is pivoted away from the end of the wiring harness 1 when the other wiring harness is connected to the wiring harness 7.
Wiring harnesses such as shown in FIG. 9 generally work well for their intended purpose. It is known, however, for the connector to become worn or damaged when used. Such damage may be to the connector outer housing or to the electrical conductors inside harness that is connected to the vehicle, including the connector. If the damaged connector is on the wiring harness that is connected to the vehicle, the wiring harness will need to be disconnected from the various connection points inside the vehicle and removed, and a new wiring harness will need to be installed and connected. It is also known to physically cut off the damaged connector from the wiring harness and affix a new connector onto the wiring harness. This requires soldering or otherwise attaching each individual wire of the wiring harness to a respective pin of the connector and then covering or otherwise insulating the connection points. Such a connector may have many wires and connection pins, thus requiring a significant amount of time and labor to reattach each wire to each pin. Also, these new connections may cause problems if they are not properly made.
What is needed, then, is a wiring harness assembly used with a vehicle and a snow/ice control device that has a replaceable connector that may be easily and reliably replaced should the connector become worn or damaged. The present invention addresses this need.